


In the Dark of Night

by orphan_account



Series: Fill the Void [26]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Western, Bandits & Outlaws, M/M, Minor Violence, red dead redemption au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-08
Updated: 2020-04-08
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:40:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23544784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Ryan and Gavin have been separated from the posses and are low on funds. When outlaws get desperate, they get creative, but not everyone is appreciative of being taken advantage of in the dark.
Relationships: Gavin Free/Ryan Haywood
Series: Fill the Void [26]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1663750
Kudos: 20





	In the Dark of Night

Gavin heard his approach before he saw him. The heavy set hoof steps of Ryan’s mount coming down the path. Gavin was set up primly within a tree. It was safer than the ground when he was needed to wait. Upon Ryan’s approach, Gavin jumped from the tree and landed solidly on his feet.

“So what do you got?” he asked.

Ryan pulled up on his reins and swung his right leg off the horse followed by the rest of him. “Summer home,” he said. “The family’s living in Saint Denis for now. They won’t be back for a while.”

“Saint Denis folk eh? Sounds like a good find.”

“Should give us something to work with to get out of these damn woods.”

They needed some money. Just a bit. Not too much to require following a coach and terrorizing some poor city folk. But just enough to get them out of coal country here and back out west. Further south perhaps into New Austin. Try to catch up with the posse after being forced to separate by a Pinkerton contingency catching them unawares. And hopefully this would be the one thing they needed to do.

They waited until nightfall, Gavin trying not to let his nerves get the best of him. Ryan remained vigilantly on guard the entire time. These hills were dangerous and they were only two men. They no longer had the safety in numbers with the posse, and Gavin was getting anxious. They’d hardly slept these past few days. Rotating ever four hours to stay on watch, stay vigilant, stay safe.

Gavin could see the toll on Ryan’s face. The dark circles beneath his eyes, the moments of time he would suddenly check out before Gavin said his name twice. He was exhausted, doing as much as he could to keep them both safe and fed, which was no easy feat for two outlaws on the run together. Gavin was surprised they hadn’t yet tried to kill each other with the amount of bickering they’d do. But now that they had something to fill their time and occupy their energy, they remained silent and watchful. And as soon as the night fell, Ryan was gathering up his gear and unhitching his horse from the tree. He hauled himself up onto the horse’s back and extended his hand down to Gavin. Grabbing high up on his forearm with Gavin doing the same, he was hauled up onto the powerful mount and situated behind him.

Another disadvantage to this life of theirs. Gavin had lost his horse after their mad dash and they needed a secondary mount to make their escape easier. Perhaps they’d be lucky enough to find a horse along the way.

The summer home was two floors, partially sunken into the ground with a lakefront view. Gavin could practically smell the luxury off of it. All the windows were darkened. There was no sign of a horse nearby. Clouds covered the sky, eliminating all possibility of help from the moon and it was much too dangerous to light a lantern.

“Did you scout the place out?” Gavin asked. It wasn’t too far off form the roads or the train tracks, so they had to do this quickly and quietly in case any passerbys had the bright idea of alerting the authorities to a night time burglary. Not that any authority figure would come by at this time of night, but they couldn’t afford any other setbacks. Not now.

“Entrance down below,” Ryan said. “Basement up. Out the front door.”

“Right. Got it.”

He slipped from Ryan’s horse and crept his way further down to the water’s edge. He’d make his way up to the house from there and that way he’d have clear view of the roads and anyone else who might be here.

With Ryan further back and out of the way, Gavin approached the house. He came up to the door and found it, predictably, locked. He withdrew a small and rather dull knife he used to jimmy open windows. He worked the blade in between the panes and swiped up until he caught the lock. After some jimmying the latch came free on the other side. He crawled in through the window and landed lightly on his feet. Michael always asked why he wore soft soled shoes. Considering their rough and tumble lifestyle, hard soled shoes were the likely choice, but Gavin was a thief and a thief required two things. 1) sticky fingers. 2) quiet feet.

He began to search through the drawers and cabinets with ease, following the stairs up to the next floor. He took few material valuables but not many. There’d only be a few chances to pawn them off on the way and they couldn’t be bogged down with much. He took mostly jewelry, pretty little trinkets that would fetch a good price once the right buyer came along.

He worked through the kitchen, the parlour, the sitting room, and the first bedroom. Then he was onto the parents’ bedroom, he assumed. A family this rich would likely have a bill fold squirreled away somewhere.

He entered the bedroom and only too late did he catch on to the footsteps behind him and the sound of a gun being cocked.

“You’re going to drop that bag of yours, thief,” a man said from behind him. Gavin didn’t dare move a muscle for fear of being shot.

“Easy there, lad,” he said. “Nothing to get spooked about.” He slowly lifted the strap of his bag up over his head and let it drop to the ground. He kept his hands fanned away from his body. Didn’t want to give the man any ideas.

“You’re trespassing on Hawkes’ property, boy. You know how they punish thieves in the old country?”

“I could give a guess.” Sweat beaded and rolled down his temple. Despite the years he’d spent in this profession, he would never get used to personal confrontations like this.

“They cut off hands. Get a brand hot in the fire to make sure none get caught unawares of what you really is.” He heard the man take two steps closer. “Now, I’m gonna tell you to get down and you’ll go. Hawkes won’t like a mess in the house.”

Gavin moved slowly, kept his hands visible, no sudden movements, and just as he was on his knees, fearing that this man would shoot him and leave him for dead, the front door gave a violent slam, kicked in from the outside. The man sputtered and then a deafening boom. Blood sprayed the room. The man fell back on the floor, dead, nearly on top of him. Blood and gore raining down upon him as Gavin trembled on the floor.

Standing in the door was the ghostly figure of Ryan. The so called Omen of Death down in Del Lobos territory. And now Gavin could see why. If he didn’t know Ryan would be watching over him, he’d think this was the ghastly figure of death come to take his life.

Ryan crossed the floor in big steps, reaching down and plucking Gavin up like he weighed nothing. “You hurt?” he asked, placing one gloved hand on Gavin’s face, wiping away the remains of the stranger from Gavin’s cheek. “I saw the horse. Caretaker I think. Hired by the Hawkes to look after the place.”

Ryan stepped away, taking the warmth with him. Gavin stumbled but caught himself. He heard Ryan shifting around in the bedside tables, rifling through the dead man’s pockets before picking up Gavin’s satchel and tucking him under his arm like a mother bird. “Come on. Let’s get from this place.”

He led Gavin outside and gathered the dead man’s horse. “Take it,” Ryan said. “We need to leave.”

Gavin nodded mutely and saddled up. They rode away from the summer house and back into the wild, this time heading back out west, following the quiet trails and staying off the main road. It would take some time for Gavin to find his voice after that night, after having a man that shot so closely in front of him.

It bewildered him some times. What Ryan was capable of. Such a well read and soft spoken man he could be at times. But also capable of great cruelty and great crimes. Gavin understood little of it, but he would never be prepared for when Ryan would do that. Gavin was simply a thief. What was he doing with the Omen?

Days later, they found themselves crossing over into New Austin. The money from the robbery had gotten them out of trouble and now they were on their way to catching up with the posse and returning to life as it should be.

“You ready?” Ryan asked him. They’d be heading into Del Lobos territory which would be a new type of danger all on its own, but a welcomed change none the less.

And Gavin looked at Ryan. Looked at this man bathed in light, appearing as if an angel. And he knew then that despite all he’d seen and all he’d been through, there was no other person who could make him feel as safe even in the midst of absolute danger.

‘More than ready, love,” he said and dug his heels into his mount’s side. 


End file.
